Bypassed by the Boss

Bruce Springsteen is launching a U.S. tour beginning about two months after his Super Bowl halftime show Sunday, but it appears the closest he will come to Dallas is Austin. The only other scheduled Texas stop in the tour is Houston. There are some open dates where he could squeeze in a Dallas stop, but they would require four shows in four consecutive nights in four different cities and Bruce doesn't even have three consecutive nights booked for this tour so a Dallas stop seems highly unlikely.

However, Bruce's tours usually have more than one leg. I wouldn't be a bit surprised to see, after his May hometown dates, Bruce and the E-Street Band head over to Europe for a couple of months and then return for more U.S. shows in the fall, during which he will play Dallas.

Anyway, here's how the tour shapes up right now:

4/1, San Jose, CA (HP Pavilion at San Jose)
4/3, Glendale, CA (Jobing.com Center)
4/5, Austin, TX (Frank Erwin Center)
4/7, Tulsa, OK (BOK Center)
4/8, Houston, TX (Toyota Center)
4/10, Denver, CO (Pepsi Arena)
4/15, Los Angeles, CA (LA Memorial Sports Arena)
4/21-22, Boston, MA (TD Banknorth Garden)
4/24, Hartford, CT (XL Center)
4/26, Atlanta, GA (Philips Arena)
4/28-29, Philadelphia, PA (Wachovia Spectrum)
5/2, Greensboro, NC (Greensboro Coliseum)
5/4, Hempstead, NY (Nassau Veterans Mem. Col.)
5/5, Charlottesville, VA (John Paul Jones Arena)
5/7, Toronto, ONT (Air Canada Centre)
5/8, University Park, PA (Bryce Jordan Center)
5/11, St. Paul, MN (Xcel Energy Center)
5/12, Chicago, IL (United Center)
5/14, Albany, NY (Times Union Center)
5/15, Hershey, PA (Hersheypark Stadium)
5/18, Washington, DC (Verizon Center)
5/19, Pittsburgh, PA (Mellon Arena)
5/21, E. Rutherford, NJ (Izod Center)
5/23, E. Rutherford, NJ (Izod Center)

All things considered, I would rather be on a subsequent leg. This tour is designed to promote today's release of his "Working on a Dream" CD. The last time Bruce played Dallas it was on the first leg of his "Magic" tour and on that night, as he did on most nights of the first leg of that tour, the bulk of the 2-hour show consisted of tunes from the new CD. By the time the second and third legs came around, however, Bruce was back to his normal self -- 3+-hour shows with the setlist changing dramatically every night.

I would love to see one of those Bruce marathons here in Dallas, but, since (unlike Austin and Houston) Dallas has never been that Bruce-friendly, I guess I'll just have to keep my fingers crossed, say a few prayers and hope.